An Invercargill mayoral hopeful has questioned the need to include climate change in a recent waste report.

Longstanding city councillor Ian Pottinger — who announced in March he would run for mayor — made the comments at a WasteNet meeting this week.

The shared waste service covers three Southland councils and now includes a connection to a regional climate change forum as part of amendments to its strategic plan.

But when the climate group was mentioned as part of the change, Pottinger began to ask questions.

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After a lengthy response from WasteNet chair Keith Hovell explaining the group was still collating data and understanding issues, Pottinger made his position clear.

“From the answer you’ve given me, why are we including them in our thing at all?” he asked.

“They make absolutely no sense because they don’t stand up and give us the scientific statement which says ‘you must not do this because of this’.

“I’d like to get rid of it altogether.”

Pottinger claimed the group couldn’t point out which part of WasteNet’s actions they wanted to change, but Hovell rebuffed that, saying the councillor had pointed out one himself during discussion — discharge from vehicles.

Hovell said it was important to be mindful of how different types of waste were dealt with, including at closed landfills which were prone to environmental issues.

He accepted progress was slow and indicated the group wasn’t at the point where it was able to give specific directives.

Speaking to Local Democracy Reporting, Pottinger said he did not want to get rid of the climate change group, just the wording and reference to climate change in the report.

The councillor did not give a direct answer to whether he believed in climate change, saying there were people who were “for it . . . and then you have the other side”.

According to NASA, 97 percent of actively publishing climate scientists believe humans are causing global warming and climate change.

The United Nations says humans have been the main reason since the 1800s, mostly due to burning fossil fuels.

Last year was the warmest for the planet since records began.

Pottinger is in his fifth term as an Invercargill city councillor.

LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air